The casino laughed softly.
In the public, Silver sank back down into her seat next to Anne-Marie and Leyla.
Anne-Marie smirked at her and leaned in.
''So, where were you at?''
Silver smirks. Her expression and voice dripping with sarcasm.
''In the Chamber of Secrets.''
Anne-Marie laughs heartily and punches Silver's shoulder. Hard.
This one fell off her chair and glared at her from the side.
''BAHHAHAHA! I almost forgot how skinny you are, Silver! Oh wait— that's actually adorable.''
Silver rolls her eyes and stands back up.
''Again with the 'Silver's like a teddy bear' thing?'' She grumbles.
Anne-Marie smiles and squeezes her cheek.
''Not my fault if you're so cozy and huggable~!''
Silver stared at her for a little while.
She then stepped back and hid behind Leyla, a cold shiver running up her spine.
''Get away from me, woman…'' she grumbles.
With a clear of her throat, her gaze drifts to the main scene. That's when she notices that… no one was laughing.
Coco was even crouched down, his arms wrapped around himself as he questioned his existence.
''Rico's a man…?'' He murmured to himself. ''But I thought he was a woman… that doesn't make any sense… why would he be a woman? He has the scent of a woman and the allure of one. Is my life a lie? Am I an idiot? Like a fly? Ain't no way I'm a fly… Oh, a fly…'' he gazes at the insect with childish wander.
Meanwhile, Rico had a forced smile on his lips, but it was obvious he had a murderous aura behind it.
The crowd was divided into multiple groups. Some laughed, some awkwardly sat there. Some were bored out of their minds, others simply didn't understand what was going on…
That's when two silhouettes appeared behind Silver.
It was Adam, and his butler.
His hair was still a mess, his shirt revealed a few spots of his bare torso, and his jaw was tight.
He was directly glaring at Silver while she just hid her face behind a dozen of bottles.
With a silent scoff, his gaze swept over the room.
The awkward atmosphere slipped into his mind with a shiver.
'Eesh…' he thought. 'These two are a mess without White.'
Leyla glanced at Silver and quietly asked:
''What is mister Adam doing here…?''
Silver sighed and swirled the glass in her hand.
''Don't call him that…''
She took a sip of her drink before answering.
''He's wondering how he could clean the mess those two idiots did.'' She points at Coco and Rico.
She squints at Adam.
''But who knows what idea he has behind his head…''
Anne-Marie then spoke up.
She bounces on her seat.
''I want to learn so much more!''
Silver rolls her eyes at this but manages to crack a small smile.
''Whatever…''
Leyla immediately leans in.
''Ah! Can shapeshifters change their age?!''
Silver thinks about it again and glances at Coco, who was munching on one of the stage's curtains.
''That depends… but most don't have that ability.''
Leyla smiles widely.
''Can Coco do it?!''
Silver had to rub her ear because of how old she was getting…
''Yeah… he can… but unlike an immortal, he can stay as long as he wants in whatever age he is…''
She takes a sip of her drink.
''He originally is five years old…''
Leyla froze innocently.
Then screamed loud enough for all the casino to hear.
''THAT'S SOOOOOO CUTEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!''
Silver blinked.
Her hair was a mess because of the sound waves.
That girl really had an insane amount of potential…
Heads even turned towards them because of the squealing.
Great… now they were becoming memes too.
Silver rubbed her temples and took Adam's wrist to lead him out of there.
''Hey! For once that I was actually going to help!''
She takes him to the backstages and cracks her knuckles.
''I thought you wanted to talk to me.''
Adam pauses, his eyes narrowing.
''Oh yeah… tell me, what the fuck was that?
-I don't see what you're talking about…
-Blue Berry.'' He growls out.
Another sigh escapes Silver's lips.
All she wanted was having a bit of fun for once. But she forgot that even that was asking for too much in this world.
She sits down on a box and takes a deep breath.
''You won't believe me, but I had no idea she did anything before Charles— or whatever his name is— told me about it.''
Adam stares at her, as if trying to gauge if she was telling the truth. Then he sighs.
'I should've read more things about DID…'
He sits down beside her and rests his head on her shoulder.
''See? That's why I always say we have to stay together…'' he lies smoothly. ''I wasn't lying when I said I would die without you…''
'That was kind of the point, actually…' she thinks.
She lightly pushes his head away from her shoulder.
''Whatever you say, Adam…''
He cracks an eye open to glance at her. Then he rolls his eyes while forcing a smile.
''You made me upset today…'' he wraps his arms around her. ''So, now, you're calling me 'Master Adam' even when we're alone.'' He says with a smirk.
As gentle as Adam's grip was, his touch felt harsh to Silver's delicate skin.
Her breathing got heavier as she nervously pushed him away.
''Stop it!''
But his grip doesn't loosen, in fact, he hugs her tighter.
''Shh… let me protect you.''
He firmly presses her face into his chest.
She grips his shirt to escape his grip in vain.
When she was just about it give up, Coco ran into the room on all fours as Rico sprinted right behind him.
''Get back here, Coco—!''
Adam instantly pulls away and clears his throat as Silver falls on the ground on her stomach. She coughs helplessly as Adam changes subjects.
''Rico hasn't changed a bit, did he?''
He comfortingly rubs her back.
His touch felt like fire… but as much as it hurt, she chose not to say anything yet.
Adam smiles and pats her head.
''Good girl.''
He stands up and walks over to Coco and Rico.
Rico was already explaining the situation to Adam.
And Silver?
She was rubbing her neck with a gloved hand.
She was trembling.
Her eyes were wide open.
Her breathing unsteady.
Why was he like that…?
'What did I even do wrong this time?' She thought.
She shakily rises from the ground and was about to sit down on it before flinching and standing straight again.
'Everything started by sitting down.'
She left the room to take some fresh air outside, but a bunch of people were smoking. So, she climbed up the Casino and stayed on the roof.
She could feel the air gently blow her face.
When was last time she felt so free?
Her thoughts wandered to the countless times she had to push through pain, the exhaustion, just to help a citizen or two.
Couldn't she be like other people her age?
Just be a kid… and be a little immature? Was it asking for too much?
A whistle snapped her out of her thoughts.
She glanced down at the person who made the noise.
It was a tall man with dirty blond hai. His deep blue eyes glinted with recognition as he flashed a smile at her.
''Hey, kid! Want a drink?''
She stares down at him for a while, then sighs.
'One drink can't hurt, right?' She thought.
She jumped off the roof with a backflip and landed on her feet.